About this album

The Doors is the self-titled debut album by the band The Doors, recorded in 1966 and released in 1967. It features the breakthrough single “Light My Fire”, extended with a substantial instrumental section omitted on the single release, and the lengthy song “The End” with its Oedipal spoken-word section. The Doors credit the success of their first album to being able to work the songs out night after night at the Whisky a Go Go or the London Fog.
“Alabama Song” was originally written and composed by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill for their opera Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny (Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny); “Back Door Man” was a Howlin’ Wolf cover. “The End“‘s Oedipal climax was first performed live at the Whisky A Go Go and The Doors were thrown out as a result of lead vocalist Jim Morrison screaming “Mother…I want to fuck you!” near the climax of the song.

This is the birth of something new and wonderful in the arena of rock and roll music -- the psychedelia, the darkness, the allure of that darkness, the carnival-esque sound of the organ... it's really incredible that something that is frankly quite bizarre should've found as much success as it did. If you put yourself in the shoes of the average record buyer or radio listener back in 1967, imagine how fucking weird this stuff sounded, then remember that it reached no. 2 (behind Sgt. Pepper) on the albums chart and launched the band as mega stars. Amazing. I slightly prefer Strange Days to this one, but this is a truly great album and it's remarkably assured for a band's debut.